Conventionally, electric vehicles (e.g., battery powered vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles) are charged in a manner similar to those used to charge most rechargeable battery powered devices. That is, the operator plugs a charger for the vehicle's battery into an electrical outlet connected to a utility's electric power grid (the “grid”) and the vehicle's charger immediately begins charging the vehicle's battery. The rate at which the vehicle's battery is charged is typically a result of the current limit imposed by the charger's electronics and the varying internal resistance of the vehicle's battery. A vehicle's charger may contain explicit logic or components to alter charge rate in order to prolong the life of the vehicle's battery. Typically, there are no additional components for charge rate control determined by other factors.